3 Reasons Women Thrive In Sales
After reading the title for this piece and looking at your sales staff, would you agree? Are you perhaps rethinking some of your strategies for making new hires in the coming year?
I’m living proof (amongst a host of others) that women can dominate in the world of sales. Today, I’m going to show you exactly why that is and what a wonderful world it can be for those of us in heels.
Women Are Nurturers By Nature
Yes, the traditional idea of women being “nurturers” is a bit of a can of worms in today’s society, especially since we often tend to assume that being a “nurturer” precludes any possibility of leadership whatsoever.
Fortunately, that’s simply not true.
Women are nurturers by nature, and that doesn’t just refer to those of us who choose to forego a career to be a stay-at-home mother. In fact, the nurturing qualities that women possess play a large role in what helps us become great sales leaders.
Studies have consistently found that women experience more compassion, and that this compassion is usually displayed through “nurturing and bonding.”
This allows women to form long-lasting relationships with others—relationships that typically hold deep meaning for both parties and are one of the most important parts of their lives.
And now for the sales side of things …
When we try to turn a lead into a sale, we often refer to this process as “lead nurturing.”
During this process, sales people make repeated efforts to form a connection with prospects that will eventually encourage them to become paying customers. More often than not, an emotional connection is what ultimately makes the difference.
Are you seeing some of the similarities, here?
Trust me on this one—the crossover isn’t only easy to identify, it’s real.
Women Are Great Listeners
As I’ve written before, another key attribute of making a sale is taking the time to actively listen.
Yet, as important as it is to listen to what your leads have to say, a shockingly high number of sales professionals fail to do this. Believe it or not, studies have found that sales people generally talk more than 80% of the time during a sales call.
That’s not good. But once again, this is where female sales professionals tend to shine brightest.
That’s because women are, as a whole, much better listeners than men. This is backed by years of research, including findings that men only use half of their brain when conversing with others.
So, how do us “whole-brained” listeners benefit the sales world?
By listening, women are better able to anticipate and fix problems, show genuine care with their words and actions and use the things they learn while speaking with a lead to better help them find a way to address the problem at hand.
In fact, the ability to listen is consistently cited as being one of the top qualities that makes someone a great business leader.
As Verizon’s defected pitchman now says, “Can you hear that?”
That’s right—it’s the sound of women listening to your prospects and solving their problems so you can hit your sales goals.
Women Are Hardcore Empathizers
The ability to listen also gives women an advantage in another key part of the sales world—empathy. And no, I’m not talking about the kind of empathy where we both sit around and shed a few tears over the death of the family goldfish—though I love animals, and that would be tragic.
Instead, I’m talking about the ability to understand what someone feels and then connect with them in a meaningful way to form a trusted connection.
As before, this key component of emotional intelligence (EQ) is backed by several studies, and has a direct application to sales success, while also being connected with strong leadership abilities.
After all, when prospects and current customers express a concern or desire, quite often, they’re looking for something to fulfill an emotional need.
By focusing on another’s feelings, women are able to support and nurture in a way that will help your leads better appreciate how your products or services will help them.
When a potential customer gains an emotional appreciation for your product through the need-driven, empathetic work of a female salesperson, they’re more likely to become a loyal customer for life—I’ve seen it time and time again.
Conclusion
Hopefully all this has been enough to convince you that when it comes to sales, women can thrive, grow and make a significant impact.
And now that I’ve stepped down from my soapbox or sorts, I want to hear from you!
Have you taken any steps to hire more women to be part of your sales team? If you already have, what differences have you seen because of it?
Needless to say, I’d love to hear more about your experiences, so be sure to tell me about them in the comments section below. As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day!
